Jasmine Trujillo
3/14/16
Per. 7

Is Protest an Effective Way to Promote Social Change

The lists of the worlds problems are a long onThere is a need for social change, because society is not perfect. The list of the world's problems is a long one. For example: torture is practiced in many countries; many people live in poverty; discrimination occurs against women, ethnic minorities, people with disabilities, gays and lesbians, and many others. So change is needed. What sort of change? People have different visions of a desirable world, so it’s difficult to gain agreement about what would be a perfect world. Violence, including threatening, vandalizing, beating and killing has been the most popular outcome of protest. Take the Baltimore Riots for instance, because of the hospitalization and death of Freddie Gray, many people have taken it personally to where they choose to resort to violence. The citizens of Baltimore fought against the police and city council in honor of Gray’s death. Protest is an ineffective way to bring about social change because too many citizens get hurt in the process and the home and city someone once loved gets destroyed, trashed, and broken.
One of the disadvantages in using violence for beneficial change is that if the effort does not succeed, all that has been accomplished is negative; including innocent victims getting hurt during a violent protest. In the “Baltimore Riots online” article it states, “Try telling that to 61 year old Richard Fletcher who went outside his home to intervene when he saw two girls fighting. Ask him, if he can ever remember, how many misguided youth swarmed then beat him so badly he has been placed in a medically induced coma.” People were so angry at memory and death of Gray, the best way to let it out was to get caught in the violent rioting and to beat an old man who was only trying to help. That’s not what he deserved, what happened to him was sad and ridiculous. “Suffering includes the human pain and sorrow associated with death, injury, degradation, poverty and exploitation” (Baltimore Riots Online). The process of bringing about social change often has a cost in the form of suffering. Violence is not the way to go about protest. It only results in more getting hurt at the end of it all.
The homes, shops, restaurants, and etc. get majorily damaged if it’s not done to a person physically during a violent protest. “‘It’s my city and it breaks my heart.’ Said Rhodes. (Text 3). People were obviously hurt by the fact their city was destroyed. After the Baltimore Riots, the community would clean up the streets after the protest. Picking up trash, brooming broken glass, and putting things back together. Most people were heartbroken and didn’t see the point of destroying a town only to make a difference. “‘ God gave us this, ‘ he said. ‘ you’re right baby. God gave us this and we shouldn’t destroy it.’”(text 3). Not everyone will agree and is willing to watch a city get torn apart because of the death of another person. Why risk the lives of others, shops, and homes to only make a short term change.
Suffering includes the human pain and sorrow associated with death, injury, degradation, poverty and exploitation. A final consideration is that there is more to social change than suffering. Beneficial social change can be considered to be a value in itself but not through a protest that almost always ends in suffering, damage, and violence. When choosing to make a decision about trying to change a community it’s important not to make rash decisions due to having a hot tempered moment. As an example that’s exactly what groups did by contributing to the Baltimore Riots. An ineffective way to bring about social change is protest because citizens get hurt in the process and the home that people once loved or still love gets destroyed, and torn apart.